The field of the present invention pertains to audio-video systems. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a the networking of a number of electronic devices to form an audio video system.
A typical home audiovisual equipment set up includes a number of components. For example, a radio receiver, a CD player, a pair of speakers, a television, a VCR, a tape deck, and alike. Each of these components are connected to each other via a set of wires. One component is usually the central component of the home audiovisual system. This is usually the radio receiver, or the tuner. The tuner has a number of specific inputs for coupling the other components. The tuner has a corresponding number of control buttons or control switches which provide a limited degree of controllability and interoperability for the components. The control buttons and control switches are usually located on the front of the tuner. In many cases, some, or all, of these buttons and switches are duplicated on a hand held remote control unit. A user controls the home audiovisual system by manipulating the buttons and switches on the front of the tuner, or alternatively, manipulating buttons on the hand held remote control unit.
This conventional home audiovisual system paradigm has become quite popular. As consumer electronic devices become more capable and more complex, the demand for the latest and most capable devices has increased. As new devices emerge and become popular, the devices are purchased by consumers and xe2x80x9cpluggedxe2x80x9d into their home audiovisual systems. Generally, the latest and most sophisticated of these devices are quite expensive (e.g., digital audio tape recorders, DVD players, digital camcorders, and alike). As a consumer purchases new devices, most often, the new device is simply plugged into the system alongside the pre-existing, older devices (e.g., cassette tape deck, CD player, and the like).
The new device is plugged into an open input on the back of the tuner, or some other device couple to the tuner. The consumer (e.g., the user) controls the new device via the control buttons on the tuner, via the control buttons and control switches on the front of the new device itself, or via an entirely new, separate, respective remote control unit for the new device.
As the number of new consumer electronics devices for the home audiovisual system have grown and as the sophistication and capabilities of these devices have increased, a number of problems with the conventional paradigm have emerged. One such problem is incompatibility between devices in the home audiovisual system. Consumer electronic devices from one manufacturer often couple to an audiovisual system in a different manner than similar devices from another manufacturer. For example, a tuner made by one manufacturer may not properly couple with a television made by another manufacturer.
In addition, were one device is much newer than another device additional incompatibilities may exist. For example, a new device might incorporate hardware (e.g., specific inputs and outputs) which enables more sophisticated remote control functions. This hardware may be unusable with older devices within the system. Or, for example, older tuners may lack suitable inputs for some newer devices (e.g., mini-disc players, VCRs, etc.), or may lack enough inputs for all devices of the system.
Another problem is the lack of functional support for differing devices within an audiovisual system. For example, even though a television may support advanced sound formats (e.g., surround sound, stereo, etc.), if an older less capable tuner does not support such functionality, the benefits of the advanced sound formats can be lost.
Another problem is the proliferation of controls for the new and differing devices within the home audiovisual system. For example, similar devices from different manufacturers can each have different control buttons and control switch formats for accomplishing similar tasks (e.g., setting the clock on a VCR, programming a VCR record a later program, and alike). In addition, each new device coupled to the audiovisual system often leads to another dedicated remote control unit for the user to keep track of and learn to operate.
While the emergence of networking and interface technology (e.g., IEEE 1394 serial communication bus and the wide spread adoption of digital systems) offers prospects for correcting these problems, there is still no coherent, open, extensible architecture which can provide for intelligent, self configuring, easily extensible devices or AV systems. For example, while various solutions involving the use of IEEE 1394 as the basis of an AV system, none provide for the extensibility of the AV system over its life time, as new devices are added whose capabilities and features are unknown. None of these systems guarantee that all devices can be communicated with and controlled and enjoyed by the user.
Accordingly, what required is a new architecture for a home audiovisual system which corrects the interoperability and functionality problems of the conventional system. What is required is a new architecture for an open, interoperating, audiovisual system for devices within a home network. What is required is an architecture which allows devices from any manufacturer to function seamlessly with a home audiovisual system. What is required is an architecture which is extensible, and can be readily modified and advanced as market requirements and technology change.
The present invention provides a home audio visual (AV) network which defines an open architecture for inter-operating CE (consumer electronic) devices in a home network. The interoperability aspects of the present invention define an architectural model that allows CE devices from any manufacturer to inter-operate and function seamlessly within the user""s home AV system. The system of the present invention includes a combination of a base set of generic device controls with an method to extend a base control protocol as new features and new CE devices are deployed within the home AV network. In so doing, the architecture of the present invention is extensible, and can be readily modified and advanced as market requirements and technology change.
To implement the above features, the present invention includes an architecture that allows the newly coupled device to be queried. Using the results of the query, a software based abstraction of that device is generated and made available to other elements in the network. The software abstraction is referred to as a device control module. The device control module provides a predefined, standardized, set of interoperability, functionality, and control interfaces for the device. The CE device is coupled to and communicates with the home AV network via a device control module. Each CE device in the home AV system has a corresponding device control module (DCM). The DCM of the present invention also provides an application programming interface (API) to allow other applications to access and manipulate any newly coupled CE device.
Through the DCMs of the present invention, over the life time of the AV system, as new devices are added whose capabilities and features are unknown, or only partially known to other devices, a mechanism is provided which guarantees that all devices can be communicated with and controlled at some basic minimal level, and then where possible, as more information is obtained about the device, a better abstraction of the new device is created.
Specifically, in one embodiment of the present invention, the level 1 generic DCM is used to provide a basic abstraction for a devices""s functionality and capabilities based on the generic class of the device. The present invention then uses information held in the device itself to paramaterize and specialize the level 1 generic DCM so that a better abstraction of the device is made available. To do this, the system uses the level 1 generic DCM as an access point to queries the device further. Any resulting information that the device makes available is then be used to modify and parameterize the level 1 generic DCM. This enables the device to provide extra commands that the device responds to that are beyond the basic set of commands for a device of its class, extra information about how the device should be presented to the user via a user interface, and miscellaneous information that can be used to augment the device abstraction and associated application program interface (API). In so doing, the present invention provides an extremely flexible mechanism that ensures that new devices are efficiently integrated into the home AV system.